Economic self-interest and social considerations are the key determinants of public support for market reforms in transition countries. However, political strategies that rely mainly on public support for pushing through economic reforms have limited relevance if the prevailing institutional environment is weak or corrupt. Poor governance and under-developed democracy significantly reduce the level of support. A good institutional framework allows the potential gains from reforms to be realized in a beneficial way, while corruption and poor governance deny the prospect of gains for individuals and for society.
AbstractThis paper studies the determinants of Russian adult mortality controlling for both individual and household heterogeneity. We employ survival analysis and utilize 12 rounds of the Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey spanning a 14‐year period. Although confirming the crucial role of excessive alcohol consumption in shaping adult mortality risks in Russia, the results are original in several other respects. We find empirical support for the importance of relative status measured in non‐income terms in shaping mortality hazards. We find evidence of the influence of labour market behaviour, and sectoral and occupational mobility in particular, on longevity. The detrimental role of smoking to health is found to be comparable with the role of excess alcohol consumption, which is novel in the Russian context where the influence of smoking is typically downplayed in comparison with alcoholism. Finally, we find no micro evidence in support of the political economy view based on a positive correlation between low alcohol prices and high mortality rates found in regional‐level data.
AbstractWe use data from the 2006 round of the Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey to describe perceptions of the Russian population about the transition process and the role of the state compared with that of free markets. We find that about one‐half of the Russian population is disappointed with transition and a large majority is in favour of high state regulation and state provision of goods and services. High demand for government regulation and increased state intervention coexists with a low level of trust in government institutions and recognition of high and rising levels of corruption. The findings are consistent with the theory developed by Aghion et al. (2009). In an environment with poor social capital, private business imposes negative externalities on the society and society chooses to demand more state regulation and tolerate corruption to reduce these externalities. We also find that individual perceptions of social capital and corruption co‐vary with the demand for regulation, as predicted by the theory.
Using survey data from 28 transition countries, we test for the complementarity and substitutability of market-relevant skills and institutions. We show that democracy and good governance complement market skills in transition economies. Under autocracy and weak governance institutions, there is no significant difference in support for revising privatization between high- and low-skilled respondents. As the level of democracy and the quality of governance increases, the difference in the level of support for revising privatization between the high and low skilled grows dramatically. This finding contributes to our understanding of microfoundations of the politics of economic reform.
Taking into account its specific character, each country forms its own model of the social policy. Four models of the social policy are used in the countries of the European Community: social-democratic (Scandinavian), corporate (continental), and liberal (Anglo-Saxon), transitional (developing) models. Russia uses a mixed model. Any model of the social policy will not be efficient without the financial support, the instruments of which are social insurance and social assistance. Under new economic and geopolitical conditions, Russia faced a number of factors that negatively affected the state of public finance. This article analyzes substantial characteristics of social insurance and social assistance and covers the features of the Russian model of compulsory social insurance and possible directions of its improvement; it offers the option of development of a social program for private business that adapted to new conditions. ; peer-reviewed
Based on a wide range of historical sources, including published reference and anniversary editions, periodicals and documents from the collections of the Russian State Historical Archives and the Department of Manuscripts of the Russian State Library, the professional biography of Paktovskii Fedor Egorovich, a teacher, philologist and public figure, was restored. The research paper introduces previously unknown photographs of him and his family into scientific circulation for the first time, and also presents the attribution of an exhibit, i.e., a book by F.E. Paktovskii, kept in the funds of the Museum of History of the National Research University "BelSU". In accordance with the geography of his career movements, five main periods of his life (Saratov, Kazan, Morshansk, Belgorod, Khar'kov) were identified and studied in chronological order. It is established that the professional path of F.E. Paktovskii is a movement from the position of a teacher to the position of a gymnasium director, and his social activism was aimed not only at the development of educational institutions, but also the cities in which he served. The research activity of F.E. Paktovskii, as a philologist, that he practiced for many years, is also of interest to researchers. Based on the information from the materials of the periodical press, it was possible to find that he was loved by his students and the intelligentsia
Current report aims to identify major existing gaps in the four socio-economic dimensions (economic, human, environmental, and institutional) and to reveal those gaps which could potentially hinder social and economic integration of neighbor states with the EU. To achieve this, the authors aim to assess the existing trends in the size of the gaps across countries and problem areas, taking into consideration the specific origin of the gap between EU15/EU12, on the one hand, and FSU republics, EU candidates and West Balkan countries, on the other hand. The paper is structured as follows: (1) An analysis of the historic roots and origins of the development gap, and its evolvement over time. (2) A review of literature sources, draft analysis of primary statistical data, and qualitative explanations of gaps and divergences in selected development issues across four socio-economic dimensions: * level of economic development and convergence rates based on real GDP (application of methodology testing β and σ convergence to the set of countries analyzed); * quality of life and its components (poverty, inequality, health status and Heath care, access to fresh water and sanitation facilities, subjective perceptions of well-being); * human capital and labor market development, including level of education and public spending on education, its accessibility and quality, main differences in labor market development (employment participation rates and levels of unemployment, new jobs creation and labor protection legislation); * innovation potential, including R&D, information and communication technologies, and institutional environment; * environmental performance in terms of environmental stresses, efforts aimed at their reduction, and institutional capacity; * business climate, political institutions, and other institutional indicators (econometric analysis). (3) A test econometric analysis of development gaps across selected dimensions by using a Principal Components Method (PCM). The results are further presented in the form of ranks of countries analyzed reflecting their distances from EU15 in respective aggregate averages. Special attention is paid to gender-related development issues. Respective issues in human capital and labor market study, as well as variables included into PCM analysis were supplemented with relative gender data. Several preliminary conclusions finalize the report.
Current report aims to identify major existing gaps in the five socio-economic dimensions (economic, human, openness, environmental, and institutional) and to reveal those gaps which could potentially hinder social and economic integration of neighbor states with the EU. To achieve this, the authors aim to assess the existing trends in the size of the gaps across countries and problem areas, taking into consideration the specific origin of the gap between EU15/EU12, on the one hand, and FSU republics, EU candidates and West Balkan countries, on the other hand. The paper is structured as follows: 1. A review of literature on the determinants of growth and development and the analysis of the catching up process between countries or groups of countries. 2. An analysis of the historic roots and origins of the development gap, and its evolvement over time. 3. A review of literature sources, draft analysis of primary statistical data, and qualitative explanations of gaps and divergences in selected development issues across the following socio-economic dimensions: level of economic development and convergence rates based on Real GDP (application of methodology testing β and σ convergence to the set of countries analyzed); * quality of life and its components (poverty, inequality, health status and health care, access to fresh water and sanitation facilities, subjective perceptions of well-being); * human capital and labor market development, including level of education and public spending on education, its accessibility and quality, main differences in labor market development (employment participation rates and levels of unemployment, new jobs creation and labor protection legislation); * innovation potential, including R&D, information and communication technologies, and institutional environment; * openness and trade potential, including trade in goods and services, FDI stocks, trade regime and performance in logistics and infrastructure; * environmental performance in terms of environmental stresses, efforts aimed at their reduction, and institutional capacity; * business climate, political institutions, and other institutional indicators (econometric analysis). 4. A test econometric analysis of development gaps across selected dimensions by using a Principal Components Method (PCM). The results are further presented in the form of ranks of countries analyzed reflecting their distances from EU15 in respective aggregate averages. Special attention is paid to gender-related development issues. Respective issues in human capital and labor market study, as well as variables included into PCM analysis were supplemented with relative gender data. Several conclusions finalize the report.
